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Is Anakin Skywalker an Evil Person?
by GS335
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One problem in answering this is that when people think of Anakin Skywalker, they automatically think about Darth Vader, the monster Anakin will become, and for that people are quick to be harsh where he is concerned.  The reason why this is so, is that we really have not yet seen the good side of Anakin Skywalker, the good man Obi-Wan talked about in Return of the Jedi, the good friend he was...and because of that, people think he is just evil, and deserves no redemption.  I think that it is wrong.

One thing to think about is that in the original trilogy, Obi-Wan never called Anakin Skywalker evil at all.  He described Anakin as a "good man," and "a good friend."  However, he did call Darth Vader "twisted and evil."  Also, Yoda himself never called Anakin evil either.  He said that Anakin was a "powerful Jedi."  He too, referred Darth Vader as evil, not Anakin Skywalker.  With that said, while Anakin and Darth Vader are the same person, there is at least a symbolic separation of the two.  Darth Vader represents the monster Anakin became, the monster that killed the good person Anakin was...Darth Vader is the Dark Side of Anakin personified.

So, no, Anakin Skywalker was not evil, but the mistakes that he made allowed Darth Vader to appear.  Anakin is a very complex character, with a complex background, which is hard to get a full grasp on.  He is a person who has good in him as well as evil...just like all of us have.  We all have flaws, but the question Star Wars raises is: do we allow ourselves to give into those flaws?  In Anakin's case, he allowed himself to give into his flaws, which in turn led to his own destruction.  This makes him a tragic character, but certainly not an inherently evil one.

In fact, I believe Anakin will be a tragic hero of sorts, because he will be a young Jedi Knight, who had promise, who was a good man, but who let his fear and hate destroy him.  When that happens, it will be very hard and painful for a lot of people to see, because we will be seeing a good person fall from grace, a person who throws everything away in a fatal mistake.  And when we see Darth Vader again in the original trilogy, we see the consequence of those mistakes Anakin made years ago.  Remember, there is always a consequence for our actions, and we will see that Anakin's consequence is his own "death" in Episode III that causes him to become the monster known as Darth Vader.

After the prequel trilogy is over, I bet that many of the same people whom judge Anakin so harshly will look at him differently; not as just some evil person without the chance for redemption, but a man who lets his own anger destroy and enslave him until his son causes him to take a good look at himself, and change.  These people will see that one of the main lessons of Star Wars is that there is such a thing as forgiveness and redemption no matter how much evil one does.  They can still be redeemed and repent for their wrongdoing, and we can still forgive them, because we all have the same propensity within us to do evil, as well as to choose good.

You can still be a hero, regardless of the evil you've done.  People seem to have a hard time seeing that Vader was both a hero and a villain.  Yes, Vader did great evil, but when he stood up against the Emperor, he let go of his Dark emotions (fear, anger, hatred) and replaced them with love and compassion for his son. That to me is the ultimate redemption, and for that, yes, he is a hero.  Is it so hard to see that Anakin/Vader is a complex character, and not just some person in a mechanical suit, wearing a mask, who force-chokes people?  Behind the mask, was someone who was a good man, but unfortunately let his weaknesses get the better of him, instead of conquering them, and it cost him in the end.  Anakin/Vader represents the good and bad in all of us, and what can happen to anyone, if they let their weaknesses get the better of them.  He also represents a person who can change, and turn from their wicked ways, if they choose to.  Star Wars is about choices, and the consequences of those choices.  Anakin turned from the Dark Side, and redeemed himself, which enabled him to bring balance, die as a Jedi, and become one with the Light Side of the Force, along with Obi-Wan and Yoda.
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